Social Media
Social Media
stated on February 5, 2026 in social media posts:

An image shows Jeffrey Epstein “still alive and walking the streets of Tel Aviv,” Israel.

Pants on Fire!
By Loreben Tuquero
February 6, 2026

Was Jeffrey Epstein recently spotted in Tel Aviv? No, this image is AI-generated

If your time is short

  • The original, noncropped image shows the logo of Gemini, Google’s AI chatbot.

  • The image was first shared in a Reddit forum for AI images.

  • The image seemed to show Hebrew street signage, but the street name doesn’t match any in Tel Aviv, Israel.

See the sources for this fact-check

Thousands of social media accounts shared an image of a man with long gray hair and a beard, wearing sunglasses and flanked by two men.

Their guess about who it is? Disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, who died in 2019.

“Israel faked his death,” read one Feb. 5 X post with 5 million views. “Epstein is still alive and walking the streets of Tel Aviv.”

“Someone who looks like Jeffrey Epstein was JUST SPOTTED walking in Tel Aviv, Israel,” read another Feb. 5 X post with 5.5 million views. “Could this really be him? It’s literally him.”

This image also circulated on Facebook, TikTok, Instagram and Threads.

This doesn’t prove Epstein is alive. The image was generated with artificial intelligence.

Screenshot of Epstein in Tel Aviv AI image, 02-06-2026
Figure 1: Screenshot of Epstein in Tel Aviv AI image, 02-06-2026

(Screenshot from X)

Many of the posts shared a cropped version of the image, but the original shows the logo of Gemini, Google’s AI chatbot. A reverse image search showed the image was posted Feb. 1 to a Reddit forum titled “hardaiimages.” The forum’s “About” page invites users to “post your funny, hard AI images here.” 

The Reddit user who posted it confirmed in a comment it was made with Gemini. “You can see the Gemini logo at the bottom right of each picture. I didn’t think it would become so viral,” the Feb. 6 comment read.

Other details in the image show it’s fake. The road signs in the background show Hebrew text and its English translation, but the translation is inaccurate. The signs also don’t match a real place in Tel Aviv; a street named “Haangus Ev.” does not show up in Google Maps.

Screenshot of fake image of Epstein in Tel Aviv, with AI label, 02-06-2026
Figure 2: Screenshot of fake image of Epstein in Tel Aviv, with AI label, 02-06-2026

(Image from Reddit; red rectangle shows nonsensical road signs, red circle shows Gemini logo)

This image doesn’t show Epstein, alive, in Tel Aviv. We rate this claim Pants on Fire!

PolitiFact Researcher Caryn Baird contributed to this report.

Our Sources

X post (archived), Feb. 5, 2026

X post (archived), Feb. 5, 2026

Facebook post, Feb. 6, 2026

TikTok post, Feb. 6, 2026

Instagram post, Feb. 5, 2026

Threads post, Feb. 5, 2026

Reddit post by Fit-Tip5662 (archived), Feb. 1, 2026

r/hardaiimages, About page, accessed Feb. 6, 2026

Reddit comment from Fit-Tip5662, Feb. 6, 2026

Teyit, Are the images that allegedly prove Epstein is alive real? (translated by Google), Feb. 6, 2026

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